Winter Storms by Elin Hilderbrand

Winter Storms is the conclusion of the Winter Street trilogy. You can read the review for Winter Street here and the one for Winter Stroll here.

It's several months after the previous installment when this novel picks up with the Quinn family's trials, dramas, and tribulations. Rather than cover several days in December as the previous novels did, this installment picks up in the Spring and then takes us through the Summer, Fall, and into the Winter holiday with the Quinn family. And while the family will eventually be reunited and put back together, life (and death) have a way of undoing this. So without much further ado, let's dive back into the Quinn family drama.

Finally Patrick is released from prison much to the relief of Jennifer, their boys, and the whole family. However, now the family must deal with Jennifer's pill addiction which was fortunately stumbled upon by Kevin and Patrick. Unfortunately Jennifer's drug dealer was Norah, Kevin's toxic ex-wife, who has undergone some type of transformation into a designer clothing wearing, seemingly sane person. But Norah keeps texting Jennifer even after Jennifer kicks her pill habit (messy this family is). And Jennifer's sobriety is always ever only a one day at a time precarious situation because she is still barely hanging on by her fingertips.

In this installment life is going right for Kevin and Isabelle who have moved out of the Quinn family home and into their own small cottage as their Winter wedding approaches. This is all thanks to Kevin's new business venture. And life is also going right for Margaret as she marries her pediatric surgeon fiance in the Spring.

Back to the love triangle that has become Ava's life. Sigh. She is still torn between Nathaniel and Scott. Okay, in Street, Nathaniel treated her like crap. Then in Stroll Scott prioritized the sexy female colleague over Ava, and now in Storms he is dating that sexy female colleague while also still dating Ava because Ava is also dating Nathaniel. If she can't choose between these two men, then she should jettison both of them. There. I solved Ava's dilemma, and she will be better off for it. Ultimately Scott's side romance with the Italian siren English teacher, whom it turns out he can't stand, torpedoes his relationship with Ava. And it serves him right. And Nathaniel's move to Rhode Island effectively ends that romance. Praise Jesus because if Ava ended up with Nathaniel, I would have never forgiven Elin Hilderbrand. Luckily a chance meeting with a handsome stranger while on a Caribbean getaway is, hopefully, the beginning of a promising romance for Ava.

Kelley successfully battles prostate cancer only to have it metastasize to his brain practically on the eve of Bart's homecoming (finally that soldier is returning home). Of course, Kelley decides to hide just how bad his prognosis is from his family. And I know this will only end in grief and tears.

Just as everyone, including the long awaited and hoped for return of the Quinn family prodigal son, is about to converge on Nantucket for a Christmas wedding, the storm of the century bears down on the East coast threatening to keep the Quinn family apart this holiday. And I swear I cannot handle this final development. For once why can't one thing just go right for this family. WHY.

--Reviewed by Ms. Angie

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A Series Of (Un)Fortunate Reviews

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